


I’ll take the long way ‘round

by ladyxdaydream



Category: Naruto
Genre: Canon Compliant, Feel-good fic despite the slightly ominous summary, M/M, One Shot, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-20
Updated: 2019-08-20
Packaged: 2020-09-19 10:05:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20329360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladyxdaydream/pseuds/ladyxdaydream
Summary: Kakashi knew Iruka was having a hard enough time processing the betrayal of his closest childhood friend—he didn’t need to add a love confession into the mix.It simply wasn’t the right time.





	I’ll take the long way ‘round

**Author's Note:**

> This little fic came to me on a drive yesterday, while listening to “Oats in the Water” by Ben Howard. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy it!

“Oi, sensei!” Kakashi called, tilting his head towards the sky. 

A mop of brown hair appeared above the railing.

“I was going to circle around to the door, but I felt you out here. Can I, uh,” Kakashi shifted the bag in his arm, “come up?”

Iruka beckoned him up with a wave of his hand.

Kakashi strolled up the side of the building, before landing soundlessly on the porch. Iruka was sitting on the ground, his back against the glass door, in the middle of rolling a cigarette. Kakashi quirked an eyebrow at him in curiosity. He’d never seen Iruka smoke before. He watched as Iruka lit it up, noticing the slight shake to his hands. He took a long drag, closing his eyes, before exhaling with an audible sigh.

“How are you holding up?” Kakashi asked, though it was rather obvious, judging by the dark circles beneath his eyes.

“Like shit,” Iruka mumbled around the cigarette between his lips, as he rolled his tobacco pouch up. He tossed it inside through the open door, where it landed with a soft _thump_.

“But this helps,” he said, lifting the cigarette in indication. He brought that same hand to pinch at the bridge of his nose, rubbing his scar, as the smoked curled toward the sky. If Kakashi had to guess, he’d say Asuma passed on this particular coping mechanism.

After another long drag, he held it out to Kakashi, who almost took it.

_Sly_ _bastard_.

Iruka had yet to catch him without his mask. His attempts were soft and kind, subtle yet genius, and fueled by what Kakashi hoped was flirtation. If Kakashi was being honest with himself, he would have shown Iruka his face by now, if it wasn’t for the fear of disappointing him.

He shot Iruka a playful glare.

“You thought about it,” Iruka laughed, as he took one last hit, before snuffing it out on the ground.

It’s true. Kakashi’s fingers had even twitched. He wasn’t sure if the tobacco itself was enticing, or if it was bringing something to his mouth that had been pressed against Iruka’s lips a moment before.

“What’d you bring me?” Iruka asked, pointing with his chin towards the paper bag, bringing Kakashi out of this thoughts. “If it’s dango or mochi, you can leave,” he smirked. 

“Oh, shit, well in that case…” Kakashi made it look like he was about to hop up onto the railing and take off.

“_Wait_,” Iruka laughed, latching onto his ankle. “Really? I thought you knew me better than that. It’s just…Anko already bought me enough for a week. And I _know_ she only brought it so she could eat it every time she visits.”

Kakashi laughed at that.

“You’re probably right,” he said, while plunging his hand into the bag, retrieving a white carton. “It’s yakisoba, by the way.”

“_Finally_ something good,” Iruka said, an excited grin on his face as he reached for it. “Don’t get me wrong, flowers are nice, but…”

Kakashi’s eye strayed to Iruka’s foyer, which could probably double as an impressive arrangement display for the Yamanaka’s floral shop. Iruka had only been released from the hospital two days ago, and already there had to be every variety imaginable, lined up along a wall. He seemed to favor a bundle of sunflowers though, which sat brightly in a vase on the kitchen table.

“Those are from Naruto,” Iruka said, noticing where his eye had landed.

Kakashi smiled beneath his mask. Of course they were. 

Iruka broke apart a pair of chopsticks, about to insert them into the takeout container, before resting everything in his lap. He removed a hair tie from around his wrist, intending to toss up his hair, but let out a loud hiss upon raising his arms.

“Do you think you could help me?” 

It was a simple enough question, yet it caused an all out war in Kakashi’s mind. He’d thought about his hands in Iruka’s hair many times before, but being presented with the possibility so unexpectedly, was enough to make him want to shushin away, lest he embarrass himself. But Iruka looked crestfallen and in pain, so Kakashi pulled himself together. 

Iruka rose from his lean against the door, giving his back to Kakashi—an act of serious vulnerability—as Kakashi knelt behind him. Iruka was clad in nothing but a pair of loose navy blue pants, that cuffed at the ankle. His torso was covered with so many bandages, you could barely see his dark skin beneath.

Kakashi combed his fingers over the top of Iruka’s scalp, noting how some of the tension fell out of his frame. He did it again, expanding his rake to include the sides of his head, as Iruka rolled his neck to chase the touch as it moved. Kakashi would happily do this all night, if it meant Iruka could get some proper sleep. He knew that’d be crossing a line though, a line he wasn’t entirely sure Iruka wanted to cross. 

Kakashi had been aware of his feelings for awhile now. When he’d finally summoned the courage to talk about it, Iruka had literally been stabbed in the back, with a giant shuriken no less, by his closest childhood friend. He was probably having a hard enough time processing the betrayal; Kakashi didn’t need to add a love confession to the mix.

It simply wasn’t the right time. 

As he was wrapping the tie around Iruka’s ponytail, Kakashi’s eye flicked to the middle of his back, where he knew a massive wound was concealed. It took every ounce of strength Kakashi had to clamp down on his killing intent. If that motherfucker _ever_ stepped foot in Konoha again, he wouldn’t have time to be sorry, because he’d be dead in an instant.

“Thanks,” Iruka said, scooting back towards the door, which was Kakashi’s cue to take up his post against the railing again. He tried not to mourn the loss of proximity.

“So,” Kakashi began, “do you have special visiting hours, sensei?” he teased. “Should I make an appointment next time I want to see you?”

Kakashi knew Iruka was popular in the village, but not in the same way he was. His popularity kept people at a distance, whereas Iruka’s did anything but. He had a feeling the onslaught of gifts and well-wishers wasn’t going to end anytime soon.

“If you’re always bearing food, you can come whenever you want,” Iruka smiled around a mouthful of noodles. 

Kakashi almost told Iruka to be careful, because then he’d be here three times a day. But the nature of a joke is, is that if you actually _do_ it, it’s no longer considered a joke.

Kakashi didn’t want to limit himself. 

He was already thinking about what he could bring Iruka for breakfast tomorrow.

**Author's Note:**

> •́ ‿ ,•̀


End file.
